Limelight (1952)

Director: Charles Chaplin
Starring: Charles Chaplin, Claire Bloom, Sydney Chaplin, Nigel Bruce, Norman Lloyd, Buster Keaton
Certificate: U
Genre: Drama, comedy
Awards: Best music

It may not be the first thing that comes to mind, but Charlie Chaplin had a voice for film. His soft tone  soothes so well and makes him a joy to listen to. In Limelight - made 11 years after his first talkie, The Great Dictator - Chaplin plays the washed up comedian Calvero who stops Thereza (Bloom), a ballet dancer from killing herself. He then convinces her that life is still worth living whilst sinking further and further into failure and misery himself.

Limelight is a truly touching film about how life always has something else to offer, even if you think the best of it is over. Obviously this can draw parallels with Chaplin's own career that make the film sadder.

Yet the film is overall uplifting and even features a comedy sketch with both Chaplin and his rival Buster Keaton, making Limelight watchable just for that brilliant sequence that people had always wanted to see.

Whilst not your typical Chaplin comedy, Limelight shows a much older man with much older woes that portray a melancholic but satisfied tone. The film shows that he still had what it takes even after his glory years had passed.

****Good

True Lies (1994)

Director: James Cameron
Starring: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Jamie Lee Curtis, Tom Arnold, Art Malik, Tia Carrere, Bill Paxton, Charlton Heston
Certificate: 15
Genre: Action, Comedy
Awards: None

In True Lies, Schwarzenegger plays a secret agent on the trail of a terrorist organisation, yet his work is getting in the way of his family life as his wife (Lee Curtis) becomes more and more irritated with his constant absence. Thus the strain of keeping his family together and defending the world from Crimson Jihad increases and intertwines...

True Lies is possibly of of the least cheesy Schwarzenegger films from the 90s as he plays a character rather than just himself - yet he still juts through a bit as always. Whilst the action scenes are very good and the pace one well, the comedy aspect sometimes grates - perhaps because of how the film has aged but it just doesn't seem to be that funny anymore.

A lot of True Lies seems to have influenced The Incredibles as they are very similar in theme and sometimes even in plot points, with a man having to cover his secret identity and live a normal life. Therefore True Lies is undoubtedly a very influential film and should be remembered.

Overall, True Lies is an enjoyable film but I was expecting a bit more from a post Terminator 2 James Cameron. There isn't much to make it stand out yet that doesn't make it any less adequate.

****Good